Same As It Ever Was. Or Was It?

No rain provided the opportunity to get some exercise. Had it only been ten days since I’d ridden? It felt more like it had been a hundred.

Old Creaky Knees
Last night I drove the Red Rocket to a Marta station where I started my change and setup for the night’s ride — that almost didn’t happen.

While standing there with my trunk wide open a guy walked up to me bumming for cash or a drink. While standing there I felt he was also sizing up the contents of my car. With my bike next to the car and me preparing for a ride I considered the Jackmobile a sitting target once I rode away. And I knew that I was planning on riding to Stone Mountain and back so I knew that I’d be gone for at least two hours. After much deliberation I decided to park my car elsewhere and take off from one of the side streets instead of the Marta lot. It’s a shame that I have to think in this way, but one of the last things I need in my life right now is to return to a car with a smashed window.

The ride was seemingly uneventful, that was until I entered Stone Mountain. Once I entered the park I saw a sign that notified people that roadwork was being done inside the park and to expect delays. Down around the golf course I encountered my first setback, roadwork which took the road down to one lane instead of its normal two. That was bad, however the biggest setback was still to come.

As I rode along the road two riders headed in the opposite direction yelled “road’s closed ahead.” Of course I needed to see this for myself… 😉

I assumed that the road would be closed at the point where it crossed the lake. To my surprise I was wrong. It wasn’t until I started the climb past the hotel/convention center that I saw the “ROAD CLOSED” sign. With a police officer stationed at the closure I decided to ask if he knew about the closure. The officer told me that the road by the fishing house (I think that’s what he said) had all but completely washed out and that it was going to be “some time” before it reopened.

Post ride last night I settled in for a “dinner” of beer, Triscuits, and some hunks of Babybel cheese. As I sat there trying to relax I could tell that my knees were not going to be happy; today they are still on the sore side.

So I ask, who should I get to look at my seat position and help me purchase new pedals and shoes? I want to keep riding, but I can’t deal with the pain.

ITP Flickr Pic
I’m trying. I’m trying…

There is a saying in photography that the best camera is the one you have with you. All I had with me yesterday was my iPhone, but that didn’t stop me from stopping at the lake and taking a photo of the water and sky.
To make the photo a little prettier I used the iPhone application called “Best Camera” to punch up the colors.

I’ve Signed Up For A 39 Step Program
Of course this does not mean what you may think it means…

Yesterday I purchased a presale ticket for the December 3rd performance of “The 39 Steps” at the Cobb Energy Centre.

I am normally not one to support either Cobb County or Ticketmaster but the ability to buy one seat (not such an optimist after all, huh) in the fourth row convinced me to make the purchase. Oh, and if you’d like to purchase a presale ticket for one of the any of the performances of “The 39 Steps” use the code “UNITED” to do so.

While I’m thinking about live theater I also need to make arrangements to see “Third” at Horizon Theatre before it closes on October 11th.

Stats & GoalsDailyCurrent Mood – roughCurrent Music – listening to last night’s Top ChefWebsite Of The Day – Ever need a specific expensive application but don’t want to pony the money for it? Check Alternative To to see if there is an application that you can substitute for the expensive one.Mode Of Transportation To Work – my carExercise (b)Log – cycling, 34.3 milesMorning Weigh-In – didn’t check

September Goals
– Not get fired from my job
– Take at least one photo every day
– Restart work on house, actually making progress this time (note: not successful during August)

2009 Goals
– Reduce my weight to 190 pounds (today’s weight was 199.5 pounds)
– Completely read the book 1001 Paintings You Must See Before You Die
– Earn at least $150 through photography sales in order to cover the cost for the renewal of the Jalapeño Beach SmugMug account I opened the other day.
– Save $500 for the sole purpose of donating to charitable organizations of my choice
– Attend at least one professional photography workshop

The Unmeasurable
– Continue backing up all data, including the off-site storage
– Become a proficient programmer in Objective-C (iPhone development) and Ruby on Rails (Black Sheep web page concept)
– Do not create a solution for something which is not a problem

6 Responses to Same As It Ever Was. Or Was It?

Did you say anything to Allan about you seat position? He might have some suggestions. He will have lots of ideas on shoes & pedals.

Speaking of cheese – yesterday while at Harry’s, I saw a very interesting display – it was a Cheddar cheese with REAL bacon mixed in. Of course I bought some, but it didn’t go with the Tuna we had last night, so we didn’t even open it yet.

I rode a whole 5 miles last night (over to a friend’s softball game at Terrill Mill Park & back). Didn’t even break a sweat.

At the Day Spa Allan mentioned raising my seat. I did that and it has helped some, but it may be time for me to have someone assess my position and correct it if it’s wrong. We briefly chatted about shoes and pedals too. I think I know what I want to buy, but I’d like to have someone make sure that they are tweaked properly.

Cheese with bacon incorporated? OOOOOOOOOh, that sounds good to me. 🙂

Last night was a great night to ride. Even with the appearance of dark clouds the humidity was low and the temperature bearable.

I can only assume that the small dam at the fish house was “overtopped” by the amount of wanter and couldn’t hold it back. Technically, I don’t really think that is a dam, as the water level is the same on both sides, but there must have been enough to wash it away. Still pretty amazing.

When you were riding every day, were you having knee problems? You’ve been off the bike basically a week, right? Not to panic yet…

Steve, that sounds like an accurate account of what was described to me. Needless to say I wasn’t allowed to go past the road closure. I don’t know much about the things in that area of the park because at that time in my rides I’m usually heads down gasping for internal resources to keep me moving.

That roadway (from where today’s photo was taken) is not a damn? There is one section that allows water to pass to the other side which is much lower than the lake side.

When I was riding every day, using my old road pedals and lower seat position, my (inner) left knee hurt. Now, using my old mountain bike pedals, same shoes, and higher seat position, both (outer) knees seem strained. I’ve tried tightening up the clips of the mountain bike pedals to reduce foot movement, but I’ve either not done so enough, or that’s the wrong answer.